Multiple town managers. Multiple lawsuits. Special meetings. Emergency meetings. Resignations. Retaliation. Walkouts. Arguments (lots of them). Allegations. This is only some of what transpired during the stormy term of the current Montclair town council.
During the last four years, residents have called the Montclair council dysfunctional and corrupt, sometimes carrying signs to register their displeasure. Numerous township employees, in a culture assessment, specifically mentioned council meetings, calling the way the mayor and council behave towards one another “toxic, negative and embarrassing.” Some even said the council’s lack of civility might lead to them leaving their jobs.
Montclair Local readers have been sending in questions for the candidates. We asked the candidates to answer this question below, in 250 words or less.
Q. The current council had situations where more than one council member either walked out or left the dais during meetings. As mayor or councilor, what standards would you seek to set for both conduct and attendance of council members? Would you support the creation of a code of conduct or other pledges to maintain civility?
MAYOR
Christina Thomas
The “Sunshine Law,” otherwise known as the Open Public Meetings Act (OPMA), gives the public the right to be present at meetings of public bodies and to witness in full detail the deliberation, policy formulation and decision making of public bodies. (N.J.S.A. §10 :4-6 “Senator Byron M. Baer Open Public Meetings Act.”)
The mayor and council are to be present, to thoughtfully consider issues, and to take appropriate actions. That’s the job. The council is the legislative branch of our municipal government. Walking out, abandoning your constituents or skipping votes because you “don’t want to be there” or “don’t want to be held responsible for your vote” are unacceptable behaviors.
One can disagree without being disagreeable. However, in response to criticisms of the council’s actions and behaviors, our current council launches ad hominem attacks against members of the public; sues constituents; serves subpoenas; retaliates; then complains about how disrespectful our community is. The members of this council attack people who aren’t there to defend themselves. Gaslighting is abominable and childish. Most candidates, by attending meetings, have developed a camaraderie and respect among citizens that is very different than the current council. I think of us as a “council family.” Although it should not be necessary, it would be simple enough to create a pledge that at all times, we shall engage in respectful civil discourse.
Renee Baskerville
Absolutely. In addition to that, I would make sure that if elected, during a “retreat” early on, we would review the statues and laws that already exist and sign that we understand them.
My leadership style is such that people feel welcome and heard. I am known as “the Conscience of the Board” and “a bridge builder.” I anticipate that if I am elected I will respond in a timely manner to stakeholders to prevent the need for so many to come in anger to council meetings.
We learn about taking “a time out” from Pre-K on and “playing nice in the sandbox.” I trust that this will not be a regularly occurring situation under my leadership, but sometimes, even with the best leadership, others may feel overwhelmed or disrespected. Some may need “a time out.” Our council volunteers are human beings who experience the same day to day, family, health and life stresses as others. If it appears as though any member of our next council is experiencing severe life stresses, I will do what I do now. Offer confidentially after the meeting, to help and listen. My medical background prepares me very well for this.
AT LARGE
Susan Shin Andersen
I will seek to set standards for how council members should behave and conduct business by acting as an example: by conducting myself the same way that I have and strive to do in my professional life, my personal life, and in my roles as a committee member, volunteer, leader in advisory committees and boards. The way I have conducted myself in these arenas has served me, and organizations that I have been a part of, reasonably well thus far. I can, and will pledge to be respectful, deliberative, thoughtful, fair-minded, make decisions based on facts, and listen to residents and input from a cross-section of stakeholders before making decisions. I will not operate on conjecture or rumor, and will not personally attack or personally cut down others with whom I may not agree on issues. I will respect confidentiality as advised. I will listen, be responsive and as transparent as required and if not required by law, as much as feasible and appropriate. I will do my best to fulfill commitments to serve on the council and on committees. I will step aside if I cannot. I will own up to honest mistakes or misunderstandings.
Disagreements may occur. I am human. I do believe in granting grace to myself and others. I pledge to do my best to work through problems and disagreements setting aside ego, toward forward movement and solutions for the betterment of Montclair. I am drafting a pledge I hope elected council members will consider signing.
Carmel Loughman
I was on the Planning Board and acted on its various subcommittees for eight years. I believe I was absent twice, once when ill, and the other time to hike the Camino in Spain. My commitment was such that I planned my personal activities around my Planning Board calendar. It took preference above all else. I would do the same if I am elected to the Council.
Getting to know all the new persons running for office, I feel confident that most hold the highest ethical standards and will conduct themselves with the appropriate decorum. I actually worked briefly with a departed councilor, and others interested in good government, exploring a code of ethics and conduct. This petered out for lack of follow up by the councilor. Guidelines on a piece of paper are meaningless if one doesn’t already have a moral, ethical compass, and enough respect for the office, to refrain from bad behavior.
I think viewing the council position as a stepping stone to higher office may have caused a breach in ethical standards and the lack of decorum councilors displayed. People rather than issues became targets. Lots of money is needed to run for office. Courting donors is an essential part of the job. The favors exchanged for influence run from the mundane, a nice bottle of wine with lunch, to the extraordinary, gold bars in a shoe box. I have no interest in higher office and just want to work for the good of Montclarians.
Robert Russo
Civility and democracy go hand in hand. Some of the current council members and mayor have acted in ways that created a bad working environment for others. The previous manager and some staff have not always respected or welcomed my questions or suggestions for improved governance or communication. A code of conduct would be helpful, but when the public is not aware of what goes on in closed sessions, where most decisions are made, and with a somewhat confrontational atmosphere being common, the maintenance of civility and pledges to be fair and transparent are meaningless.
Attendance at council meetings has been an issue for many years. I recently provided the 4th quorum vote to allow business to be conducted, and have also supplied the quorum, in the past. But with an illness for over a two-year period, which was finally resolved by a major colon operation, I was absent more than I would have liked, recovering from surgery and leaving some meetings early due to my condition. I also left some meetings during the closed sessions when I was subject to unfair criticism against my views and actions, all aimed at protecting the public interest and providing more honest, transparent conduct and good government. I teach this in my Public Administration classes at various universities. I do not believe I have ever done anything unethical. I have, however, become very concerned about financial misconduct, political bullying and intimidation. I pledge to maintain civility during my next term with a new council.
FIRST WARD
Erik D’Amato
Yes, the scenes have been dispiriting, and have gone way beyond councilors walking out of meetings. I think some of this has flowed from some members spending too much time in the snakepit of statewide politics. I am hopeful that a new cast of characters who aren’t mixed up in all that will naturally chill things out.
I would support a code of conduct for councilors, and hope that it extends to things like politicking from the dais. But I think the challenge is largely one of fostering a culture where people are incentivized to be curious and good-humored rather than pointlessly gladiatorial. And I would say that anyone who wants to know how I would act behind the dais should look at some of my appearances in front of it. While I’m not immune to the negative energy that seems to hang over the Council chamber, I have tried hard to be respectful, and to bring levity to situations that are bitter and divisive.
I also think the council should take a cue from the Board of Education, whose recent meetings have been like Buddhist retreats compared to the thunderdome of the Council chamber. The current Council could likewise do worse than applying some of the restorative justice practices used in our schools, maybe wrapping up in June with a big Restorative Justice circle and talking out the beefs they’ve had over the last four years, rather than wallowing in them all summer.
Shivaun Gaines
I would not create a code of conduct or other pledges to maintain civility as personal standards and values can guide behavior without such documents. Individual commitment to the principles often outweighs the need of formal documents.
SECOND WARD
Ilmar Vanderer
Prioritizing civility, respect, and collaboration, and creating public spaces that are open, fair, and considerate to everyone, are the cornerstones for a functioning democracy, so it should go without saying that council members, along with township management, must set an example for our community by modeling constructive behavior and demonstrating commitment to values of courtesy, dignity, integrity, and personal accountability. That said, legislating civility through pledges or codes of conduct can be a tricky undertaking and may not result in an effective enforcement mechanism as much as an opportunity to engage in discussion about shared values.
My record of serving for four years as the mayor’s representative on the Montclair Public Library Board Of Trustees speaks for itself. During that entire time, I did not ever miss a single meeting or leave a meeting early for any reason, all while serving on three additional committees, fulfilling my duties and responsibilities in terms of participatory expectations, demonstrating a proven record of dependability and civility in public conduct, and displaying proven ability to function effectively in an environment similar to the council with no issues arising.
To ensure that Montclair’s government reflects our core values, collective vision, and common aspirations, and succeeds in bringing people together, bridging divides, and creating a better future for our community, I think it is important to choose only those candidates with demonstrated tangible evidence of dependability and civility in their public conduct, most ideally within the environment of a township board role or a committee position.
Eileen Birmingham
Of all of the challenges I see in joining the council (e.g. the already very large budget with many competing needs, making our streets safer, sustainability), I am not as worried about being able to work well with fellow councilors in a collaborative, “non-dramatic” way.
I believe we can all work in a spirit of collegiality, with a focus on data to drive decisions. In my experience, disagreements over ideas should not be discouraged—it is important to make sure to consider all aspects of any decision, and listening to those who disagree or see things differently is critical. However, it is important to keep disagreements from devolving into interpersonal, affective conflict. Key to preventing this is to establish ways of communication in which council members can all be informed, and information can be appropriately shared with the public. I think at the outset the council can establish ways of working to encourage a collegial, collaborative environment. I’m not sure this would have to be a formal code, but I would be open to it if others felt it would help.
THIRD WARD
Rahum Williams
First, I would be shocked if such documentation does not already exist. If it does not, it should be created in short order. If it does exist, a refresher to the policy and a meeting with the members of the council to discuss expectations should be at the start of the tenure of the new council.
Working in corporate America I have a few decades of experience in very challenging discussions both with internal stakeholders and external clients. Having difficult conversations is part of my life and I do not shy away from them. We will all have an opinion and a disagreement at one point in time, however, the objective is to hear each other out and attempt to come to a mutual understanding. There will likely be times when you have to agree to disagree but that can and must always be done in a professional and cordial manner. Remembering we are neighbors, our children may be friends, and we want to keep Montclair a place we are all proud to call home and raise our families.
Roddy Moore
I support the idea of establishing a code of conduct for Montclair’s town government, as it could set a clear standard for ethical behavior that is crucial for civility, transparency, and maintaining public trust. However, the effectiveness of any code of conduct fundamentally depends on the presence of a strong enforcement mechanism. Without it, even the most well-intentioned code risks becoming just a symbolic gesture, used more for political posturing than for guiding actual behavior. I am philosophically opposed to such gestures that offer the appearance of integrity without substantiating that image with action.
Wendy Tiburcio
I support adhering to a code of conduct or similar guidelines to guide council members’ behavior. It’s crucial for council members to treat each other, town personnel, and the public with respect and civility, even during disagreements. They should also consistently demonstrate integrity, honesty, and transparency in their duties. These values are essential for fostering effective communication, collaboration, and trust within the council and the community. Therefore, I fully support adopting and adhering to these principles to encourage a culture of mutual respect, cooperation, and accountability within our town council.
FOURTH WARD
Zina Floyd
As a councilor, I would emphasize the importance of professionalism, respect, and commitment to duty. Regular attendance and engagement during meetings are important. I would support establishing a code of conduct that sets clear expectations for civility and decorum among council members. This code would serve as a guideline to prevent disruptive behaviors and ensure that all members are fully present and accountable, fostering a constructive and respectful environment for decision-making.
Patricia Hurt
I would support a code of conduct for all council members, board attorney, town manager and department heads.
Aminah Toler
“Civility” is a term that has been excessively used and, in my view, serves as a means to steer away from serious questions that demand genuine answers from an elected official.
The single most impactful thing we could do to improve the way our Council functions is to stagger the terms of its members, with the four Ward councilors elected two years apart from the Mayor and two At-Large councilors. Nothing runs in this town unless there’s a cohesive group of at least four Councilors working together to move important agenda items forward. If the Council is totally dysfunctional, or if we don’t like the way a majority is behaving, we wouldn’t have to wait four years to fix it. The idea of staggering terms was on everyone’s list in the 2012 election but the idea seems to have fallen off the radar. I’d very much like to see it come back.
“Election 2024: Does the Next Montclair Council Need a Code of Conduct?”
Does Watching Plaza need a traffic light?
JeffJacobson,
I disagree. Constituents voting members off in a staggered sequence, in itself, will not ameliorate Council dysfunction versus the current system.
I don’t have a strong opinion on staggered vs. non-staggered system. One observation I have that I don’t remember there being much bad conduct during the 8 years before this Council took over. Although 2012 it was bumpy too. Considering that, I wonder if it’s less about the system and more about quality of people.
JJ makes a valid point though that when you end up with a bad group, it’s better when you can hope for reconfiguration and possible improvement in two years rather than having to bear with a mess for four.
Jeff proposed this as a solution to the problem of poor GROUP dynamics leading to GROUP dysfunction.
Our current system gives us the opportunity every 4 years to make our choices for 4 of the 7 seats on the Council. To effect a majority that hopefully will work cohesively in service to the public. The pool of choices – the pats of a team – laid before us at the same time. For us to see what they bring and how they collectively will work to address the issues and priorities of the day.
The staggered system Jeff proposes would have us spread those 4 votes over 2 years. 3 voted in one cycle and 1 vote in the other cycle. The Ward Councilor cycle would give us just one vote that year – to represent the wants & needs of that Ward’s constituents. Two years later is the Mayor & At-Large cycle to cast our 3 other votes, but now a minority of the 7-member Council.
Jeff’s definition of the problem assumes a case where a Ward Councilor is the problem, that the Ward needs to fix it, and this sole vote will change the dynamic of the GROUP. The replacing the bad egg solution that will restore the group’s functionality. If the problem children include other Ward Councilors, those Wards need to replace their representative to benefit the rest of us. A new, reconstituted cohesive & effective majority.
Many have settled on assigning the fault with Mayor/At-Large representatives (Spiller, Yacobellis, Russo). This solution would not have altered the reality that we would still have had to endure their 4 year tenures. Further, this Council is comprised of 4 incumbents that served 2 previous terms. Were they always this dysfunctional or did they implode in just this latest term because we added 3 new Councilors? Or, we can look at the pool of choices we had in 2016 & 2020? They were suppose to be a cohesive collection of proven representatives. A big selling point of slates.
We will be picking them to work together for just two years without any informed expectation or commitment on their parts beyond that.
Properly identifying the problem should drive the solution. This is a solution that doesn’t and further would require moving the elections to November. This proposed solution does not happen in a vacuum. It doesn’t stand on its own. It has many inter-related parts and, as is, simply is a precursor to changing our form of government.
Thanks for breaking it down, Frank. I wasn’t exactly sure how the whole mechanism worked.
I’m glad you reminded us that 4 out of 7 on the current Council were there during 8 years prior to getting reelected in the 2020 cycle. Those 8 years were peaceful and all 7 guys seemed to work well together. Civility and bad conduct were never an issue back then. Last 4 years saw the demise of civility despite presence of 4 veterans from those peaceful, gentler period of governance. What gives?
Start with no Mayor Jackson. He was the glue, the straw that stirred the drink, the border collie that herded the sheep. His leadership, experience and omnipresence defined that Council. Even so, the Jackson Council was fracturing towards the end. The frustration all around with the state of and the management of the schools. Rent control (remember he abstained). The spurned Council Baskerville over the Deputy Mayor title. The Public Library finances (a Bridge Too Far?). And, of course, the CFO persistence – and financial exposure to all but one – over their personal medical benefits. That Council had run its course. Many of us did what I did in justify voting to retain Hurlock. Their replacements on this Council had highly aspirational agendas, but didn’t appreciate the fundamentals of job, including building effective working relationships as part of any job. The relationships one needs to cash in when things go askew. And when things did get contentious, for this reason or that, several over a pet projects, it became a death spiral. Now we get to clean house in one cycle.
And I forget the crushing lack of community appreciation for what that Council accomplished. Mayor Jackson made an explicit point in one of the last meetings of self-recognizing their achievements to fill the void of gratitude by the constituents .
And they will finish with a flourish. Where does the buck stop when the Township is not enforcing the decision of the Zoning Board over the Woodman baseball field? Or how about the Council allowing the Township to take a page from the BoE’s playbook with the ridiculous short window to review the municipal budget? Nothing good will happen in the next two months. Certainty nothing the new Council should repeat.
Frank makes a good point that an election in which each resident can only vote for one office wouldn’t be a great idea. Perhaps it would be better to have the stagger be two Ward councilors, and the Mayor in one election and the other two Ward Councilors and the At-Larges in the other. But I stand by my overall point that we should be able to emplace at least three members of a four-vote majority every two years.
I agree that the Jackson council was effective for a great while and that Robert was the reason. Ironically, though, his most loyal compatriot and hardest worker on the Council was Hurlock, who was the single winner of the 2012 election not on Jackson’s handpicked slate. Sometimes you think a slate will work well together and it doesn’t work out that way. See, e.g., the current council. The dysfunction here was apparent two years ago and it sure would have been nice for the voters to have had an opportunity to effect change earlier. We stagger terms on the Board of Education and we should do the same on the Council.
Frank,
I guess I agree with you on most items. To remain for a moment in a canine realm, Mayor Jackson makes me think of a Border Collie inside a Great Dane, lol! Jokes aside, he did have that shepherd-like quality to him. He just knew how to lead without exerting undue force – I think it’s a function of personality. It was a function of his financial acumen that he was able to get AAA bond rating. Also, he neither did nonsense nor took it from anyone. In this current zoo of the Council, Spiller does nonsense non-stop and everyone else takes it. Well, save from Russo and sometimes Cummings, I guess.
I don’t know much about schools, but I do know that their BAs have been traditionally lacking in financial knowledge necessary for budget structuring. I understand the schools have a new BA now, but I have yet to see an improvement in district’s handling of finances. How in the world did $8M renovation of a baseball field become a priority in the districts with crumbling school buildings? In my son’s school, half of the windows don’t fully close and the other half are painted shut. Broken toilets/faucets. Peeling paint. Shall I go on? But they have pumped $8M into the baseball field… God, I would have audited them so fast!
Anyway, going back to the Council, it will likely do all the damage it can in those remaining two months. Spiller will do (both publicly and stealthily) everything he can to help Lapolla stay put, even if it means openly attacking one of the mayoral candidates. How’s that for a “civil” conduct, btw? It makes me sad every time I think of how this guy devalued and perverted the office/function of Mayor. It’s gross. Anyway, he’s no Border Collie, for sure. Serpent comes to mind.
Jeff Jackobson,
From my observations, decline at 205 started sooner than you say, but you are right that the nose-dive tail-end of which we are witnessing now started a bit over two years ago. I think Karasick’s departure likely led to quick escalation of chaos. That they failed to find a competent replacement resulted in fast downward spiral.
I so much hope that the new Council will be able to right the ship…
Maybe we should extend the pledge for civility and standards for attendance to the residents. All voters can commit to attending (or just watching) one Council meeting a year.
The BoE as a model? First, the Board – now of elected representatives – agreed to muzzle themselves and let the BoE President speak for them. This certainly brings cohesiveness and dispenses with the minority troublemakers. Second, inspired no doubt by the book title “Seven Days In May”, they offer Thirteen Days In May – the time allocated to the public to review the budget document before its approval deadline. Oh, and has anyone noticed the only budget information provided prior to date will have been Powerpoint presentation summaries? How great would it be if instead of us filing 1040s on April 15th we could submit a Powerpoint presentation to the IRS? I think the voters mediocre performance of their oversight role is a large part of Montclair’s governance problem.
Jeff, better. Instead of the entire town casting a single vote in May, now you have reduced it to half the town. What is it about math with this town?
Wilhelm, I can agree with all in your last post. But, we have both soft-pedaled Jackson’s other lesser qualities: his temper and low tolerance for dissent.
I hope any pledge by this new Council does not preclude using their bully pulpit. Something the Jackson Council used effectively at times.
Jeff,
The same pool of voters cat votes for their BoE representatives and their Council representatives. The school election is in November as part of the General Election. Look at the turnout numbers. I think it is fair to expect adding more Council election cycles will result in a similarly downtrending turnout. And you know what that means about influencing outcomes.
@Frank,
Benevolent tyrant approach has its place – with the stress on “benevolent”. My late father was kinda like that – loved us all dearly and took good care of us, but it was better to not get in his way of doing things. Which was okay because the guy knew exactly what he was doing, even if we didn’t always understand the full picture from the get-go. Everything always turned out right – we were allowed to make ‘safe’ mistakes, but not ones that would have have long-term impact.
Anyway, this article was about candidates’ priorities, but since you guys veered off onto conduct, decorum, and propriety, I would like to address some of the conduct of Mr. Lapolla which appears wholly inappropriate. To wit he has been:
1) Meeting with candidates to lobby for himself;
2) Doing so on town time, three (3!!!) hours at a time;
3) Prohibiting candidates to meet with department heads;
4) Discussing in fine detail confidential matters with candidates who, for now, are just… residents;
5) Criticizing performance of 2 employees (names named) to at least one candidate.
6) Shamelessly lying to candidates that the Township will fall apart without him.
Sounds crazy but it’s 100% true. I was taken aback so I asked about it some folks older than me and, apparently, there has never been a town manager in Montclair who would engage in apre-election lobbying campaign for himself! I guess it’s something that’s done in Union County and this shrewd-yet-clueless guy just doesn’t realize that this conduct feels completely inappropriate and… sleazy here in Montclair.
His inelegant conduct aside, why are we paying this dude about $800/day to lobby for himself and lie to our candidates? Wake up, Montclair!
A code of conduct for adults is ludicrous. If they can’t communicate or collaborate without calling each other names, a guidebook won’t help them. The real discourtesy and incivility is for the majority to ostracize their dissenting colleagues, to exclude them from meetings and collude with Manager, attorney and staff to withhold important information, and thus undermine our non-partisan form of democratic local government. The Council in the past has addressed or tried to address incivility; it’s really just a tool to stifle dissent and divert attention from questionable actions.
Ira,
I agree with your points about the need for a CoC. But, you went you lost me with “The real discourtesy and incivility is for the majority to ostracize their dissenting colleagues, to exclude them from meetings” etc, etc.
Quite frankly I am sick and tired of Councilors day-trips to Pity City. The poor minority getting beat up by the majority. Oh, the horror! This Council – every single one of them – had absolutely no problem using their committee system to make decisions and shape the agenda to their vision. Poor, poor Bob Russo…and the Glen Ridge Fire Contract debacle. I did demonstrably more, (ok, just called it out earlier) than he did to get it right. He sat on his hands. He knew better and he sat on his hands. This Council has something like 6 Executive Sessions the 7 months prior to our bid being drafted. Do you know in how many of these meeting this Council discussed the GR Fire Contract bid. Zero. Nada. Never. Then there was the MPL audit that started in the Jackson administration. My all-time favorite was the off-agenda introduction of the Rent Control ordinance during the height of COVID. Or Renee Baskerville with her off-agenda bully-the-Planning Board resolution on Lackawanna Plaza that Councilor Schlager took 8 months to come to terms she was ethically conflicted by her participation. The dozens upon dozens of times the public was blindsided by off-agenda items and moving items with our discussion.
I’m sorry, but there are no winners here in the civility and respect debate – only also rans. The pubic gets 2 or 3 minutes to bang on about the slights they suffer, real or imagined. The Council is up there for 3-5 hours, in public or in Executive Session, to bang on and on and on. Do not think for one minute I have any sympathy for the minority in this case or that case that have been somehow disenfranchised. But, it is all wildly entertaining – hypocrisy and all.
Willhelm, (comment posted at 8:08pm on 4/27)
Dear God, how right were you when you said Sean makes you think of Serpent… I’ve always been fearful of and grossed out by snakes. I just came to realize that, for some reason, I have a very similar gut reaction to Sean! Yikes!
In my hometown, the city council only very rarely held closed sessions. I notice here they are the norm. Why is that? Also, why doesn’t your clerk call the result of each vote?
Montclair Clerk doesn’t call votes for the same reason she doesn’t notarize documents or answer/return calls – she doesn’t feel like it.
Interestingly, at least two of our candidates for Council complained to town manager Lapolla about the Clerk not calling votes. The Manager told them he was going to make sure she did so going forward. That was about 3 meetings ago. She is still not calling the votes. How’s that for a “conduct”?
Let’s maintain a level field in calling out the practices of the current Township Clerk versus the practices of the Clerk’s Office historically. For instance, and one of my peeves, how our Clerks (current and previous) have and continue to post resolutions without the referenced attachments & schedules – and only available to the public by inspecting in person at Township Hall or via an OPRA request.
I don’t know if the two candidates’ request was passed along by the Manger to the Clerk. According to your account, the Manager said he would have the deficiency corrected. Maybe he did. Maybe the Clerk told him both the minutes and the video transcript sufficiently satisfied the requirement and the Manager hasn’t circled back and closed the issue properly.
Of course if your frustration is the ongoing “forgetfulness” of our officials on the dais to turn on their microphones, then I am totally with you. Some Council votes were inaudible along with what seemed like pointed comments only those in attendance could enjoy.
Council members, even the good ones, never seem to get it in their heads that the Open Public Meetings Act requires all meetings, and communications between or among Council members within meetings to be public, with defined statutory exceptions and a strict procedure to to invoke them. But for the bad ones, secrecy is the preferred M.O. Nevertheless, it is not public or permissible for Council members to whisper to each other, text each other, or pass notes to each other during the meeting. It’s also illegal to discuss anything in a closed session other than matters directly related to the previously identified confidential subject. It’s up to the attorney and the chair to keep the Council from veering off course. Very few things really need to be kept from the public even if the statute gives the Council that option. Promiscuous use of executive sessions to conduct business usually means that something other than the public good is being put first and the decision-making process needs to be wrapped in Charmin. The smell is particularly strong when the Council comes out of closed session after the room is nearly cleared and votes on something that isn’t even identified or is adverted to by reference to what was said or “agreed” in camera. I suppose the language of computers can best describe this form of governance: “garbage in, garbage out.” It’s time to pick up the trash.